On the Buses(TV show/series, 1969-1973)

Name: On the Buses
Genre: Comedy
Released: 1969
Rating: 3.7

30min per episode | Genre: Comedy

Scripted Reality in 7 seasons with 74 episodes

Rating: 3.7/5 (with 12 votes)

On the Buses is a British television sitcom that was broadcast on ITV from 1969 to 1973. It was created by Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, who wrote most of the episodes. It spawned three spin-off feature films and a stage version. Despite the writers' previous successes with The Rag Trade and Meet the Wife with the BBC, the corporation rejected On the Buses, not seeing much comedy potential in a bus depot as a setting. The comedy partnership turned to Frank Muir, Head of Entertainment at London Weekend Television (LWT), who loved the idea; the show was accepted, and despite a poor critical reception became a hit with viewers. The series is centred on the working-class life of Stan Butler and Jack Harper, who are the crew of the Number 11 bus at the Luxton and District Motor Traction Company. The action mostly takes place at the Butler home and at the bus depot. Network On Air describes the show as having a "bawdy, comic postcard humour and resolutely working-class outlook", and notes the series became "one of the most popular British comedy series of its era, if not all time." ()

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About On the Buses

On the Buses is a British comedy series created by Ronald Wolfe and Ronald Chesney, broadcast in the United Kingdom from 1969 to 1973. The writers' previous successes with The Rag Trade and Meet the Wife were for the BBC, but the corporation rejected On the Buses, not seeing much comedy potential in a bus depot as a setting. The comedy partnership turned to a friend, Frank Muir, Head of Entertainment at London Weekend Television, who loved the idea; the show was accepted and despite a poor critical reception became a hit with viewers.

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Trailer for On the Buses + Featurettes/Teaser/Clips

ON THE BUSES - Clip from Season 5 Ep. 14 - Stan the 'Cleaning Lady'(Clip, 2:28)

On the Buses Seasons and Episodes

02/02/1973Season 7 - 13 episodes

The seventh and final series of On the Buses originally aired between 26 February 1973 and 20 May 1973, beginning with "Olive's Divorce". The series producer and director was Bryan Izzard. Various people wrote the episodes of this series. Arthur Rudge never appears in this series and Stan Butler only appears until halfway through the series. ()

#1 | 02/02/1973Olive's Divorce

It's six months since Arthur walked out on her so Olive,armed with a list of grievances prepared by Mum and Stan,goes to court and is granted her divorce.With Mum going to stay with Aunt Maud Olive is very much the gooseberry as she accompanies Stan and his girl-friend Sandra to the pictures - to see a sexy film about a recently divorced woman - where Olive sits next to a groper. Stan gets Blakey to see Olive home whilst he goes to Sandra's for some rumpy-pumpy but Olive turns up to interrupt him as she has forgotten her house key.

#2 | 03/04/1973The Perfect Clippie

With money tight as ever in the Butler home Stan asks Blakey to employ Olive on the buses and eventually he relents. Olive's last excursion into being a conductress was a disaster but now she is completely in charge,super-efficient to the point of annoying, particularly as she has learnt the rule book off by heart and takes Stan to task for his rule-bending.It can't last..

#3 | 03/11/1973The Ticket Machine

Mum and Olive run up debts of fifty pounds when they buy things to sell on from a catalogue firm only for Olive to break them. When Blakey refuses to give him his bonus Stan warms to Jack's idea of using a stolen ticket machine to charge for fares that will not be recorded so they can pocket the profits. After Blakey has come to the house and almost sat on the machine Stan decides to confess about the machine but Blakey gives him his bonus.However he has found out about the ticket machine and makes Stan donate the money to the bus crews' charity organization.

#4 | 03/18/1973The Poster

A poster of a faceless driver appears at the depot. It is a plan to boost falling passenger figures and advertises a competition with a prize of a hundred pounds to be ... The perfect driver.Jack secretly enters Stan though the other finalists are hunky sportsmen and Stan's family take him to the chemist to buy him a rejuvenating face pack to give him a chance. Will he beat off the well-toned opposition to get his face - and - name on the poster? Of course he will.

#5 | 03/25/1973The Football Match

The bus crews are encouraged to form their own staff football team,to take on the Basildon Bashers. Jack and Stan are not enthusiastic but there is a five pound bonus on offer. The depot only has one star player,young Bob,and Stan injures him in training,so he asks Blakey if he can field a substitute - Olive. Blakey feels that women and football do not mix - until he sees the Basildon Bashers. They are an all-female team and they contrive by fair means and foul to give Stan's team a good pasting.

#6 | 04/01/1973On The Omnibuses

t's a hundred years since the Luxton Bus Company came into being and fifty years since they got their first motor bus. To celebrate the good old days Blakey organizes an exhibition and,after showing Mum and Olive around some of the museum pieces, Stan falls asleep at the wheel of a bus from the turn of the century,imagining his present-day family and colleagues in previous incarnations. Olive is a militant suffragette,Mum a washerwoman and Blakey is still Blakey,except his nickname is the Kaiser.

#7 | 04/08/1973Goodbye Stan

Stan decides he can make more money if he heads North and gets work in a car factory but,rather than hand in his resignation, he gets Blakey to sack him so that he can get a week's wages. He celebrates his last night at home and is unable to eat the fry-up his Mum has cooked him so he sticks it in his uniform pocket,a fact that Blakey discovers when he comes around to collect the uniform. However,as he has been evicted from his own lodgings,he takes Stan's room and becomes the Butlers' new lodger

#8 | 04/15/1973Hot Water

Jack and the inspector attempt to fix a water heater.

#9 | 04/22/1973The Visit

Blakey invites his mum over to the Butler home now that he is living there. Mrs. Butler is none to happy.

#10 | 04/29/1973What The Stars Foretell

The Stars make good reading for Mum and Olive. It says romance is in the air. Who will be the unlucky victims?

#11 | 05/06/1973The Allowance

3.5/5 (with 1 vote)

There's a new clippie at the depot, the militant Jessie. Outraged that the female clippies have to pay to use the public conveniences, while the male staff don't, she lobbies the management for an allowance to cover the cost.

#12 | 05/13/1973Friends In High Places

3.5/5 (with 1 vote)

When Mrs. Butler goes for a job at the depot's canteen, she is interviewed by an old boyfriend, Mr. Simpson who is one of the managers. After she gets the job, Jack and Olive try to use Mum's influence with Mr. Simpson to try and get one over on Blakey.

#13 | 05/20/1973Gardening Time

3.5/5 (with 1 vote)

Blakey and Jack have entered into the depot flower and vegtable competition. The rivalry is fierce as they both try to create the best garden.

02/20/1972Season 6 - 7 episodes

The sixth series of On the Buses originally aired between 20 February 1972 and 2 April 1972, beginning with "No Smoke Without Fire". The series was produced and directed by Derrick Goodwin for episodes one, four and six and Bryan Izzard for the other episodes. The series designer was Alan Hunter-Craig. Episodes one, three, four and five were written by Bob Grant and Stephen Lewis. Episodes two, six and seven were written by George Layton and Jonathan Lynn. ()